Sunday, September 30, 2012

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Rep. Jeff Miller, Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, issued the following statement on the approval of 45,000 veterans for the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program, and the opportunity for 54,000 more veterans to participate in the coming fiscal year beginning Monday to reach the goal of 99,000:

"Forty-five thousand unemployed veterans will soon begin, or have begun, school again, to learn a new trade through the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP). As we close out the fiscal year, I want to express my gratitude to all who have worked to make this opportunity for our veterans a success within a very short period of time.

"I encourage everyone to reach out to unemployed veterans, their families, and those in your community to spread the word. Having filled the first round of positions, the demand for VRAP is indicative of its success and need. VRAP is well on its way to providing 99,000 unemployed veterans the chance for a career in the next year."

DENVER—The number of homeless veterans is declining as the Veterans Affairs Department works to eliminate the problem by 2015, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki said Tuesday.

Shinseki visited a VA Community Resource and Referral Center for homeless veterans in Denver, shaking hands and listening as one man offered advice on how to help.

"They're in some of the toughest straits any of us will ever see," Shinseki said.

A 2011 survey found about 67,000 homeless veterans on a single night, down by 12 percent from the previous year, the VA said. Officials said 2012 numbers will not be available until later this year.

Numbers of homeless veterans in the Denver area were not immediately available.

The Denver homeless veterans center, which opened last spring, is one of 17 nationwide. They help veterans and their families find community agencies with services they need.

The VA previously announced $3.1 million in grants this year for Colorado programs that help homeless veterans. The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless will get $1.2 million to shelter homeless veterans in Denver. Volunteers of America in Colorado will receive $977,000, and Denver Options about $933,000.

The VA has been under pressure from Congress to improve services to veterans who need permanent homes or mental health care.

In May, an inspector general's report said nearly half of veterans who seek mental health care for the first time waited about 50 days before receiving a full evaluation. The VA had been saying 95 percent got a full evaluation within 14 days.

Just before the inspector general's report was released, the department said it would hire 1,900 more mental health care workers. Shinseki said Tuesday he expects to meet that goal by the middle of next year but declined to say how many of the new positions had been filled.

Shinseki's visit to Denver coincides with intense campaigning in Colorado, considered a swing state in the 2012 presidential race.

He also came to Colorado in March, attending a winter sports clinic for veterans and meeting with staff and patients at the Denver VA Medical Center.

The VA's homelessness program includes partnering with local homelessness groups, finding jobs, housing and education for homeless vets and providing medical or psychiatric care.

Friday, September 28, 2012

Read whole articleA routine bill for a cost-of-living increase for military veterans and surviving spouses just got delayed for months because of a secret hold by an unidentified Senate Republican. by Jamie Reno | September 27, 2012 8:35 PM EDT

In what appears to be an election-year stunt that quickly backfired, an unidentified Republican senator on Thursday briefly blocked disabled veterans and their survivors from getting a cost-of-living adjustment to their benefits, according to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Click here to find out more!

The Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) increase for Department of Veterans Affairs benefits, which typically passes the House and Senate without opposition, was cleared by Senate Democrats but placed on a "secret hold" Thursday by an unidentified Republican senator, Murray says.

Under Senate rules, a single senator is allowed to anonymously keep a bill from advancing toward a vote with what is called a "secret hold." The senator in this case has not been identified.

The measure, HR 4114, which passed the House on July 9, provides a 1.9 percent increase in disability benefits for veterans and surviving spouses, matching the planned increase in Social Security benefits.

In a statement Thursday, Sen. Murray said the effort to block the bill was "stunning. Particularly because we still don't have any indication why someone would block a cost-of-living adjustment for veterans and their surviving spouses, many of whom are struggling to make ends meet."

Murray said this adjustment for disabled veterans is "hard earned and well deserved. My hope is that whichever senator has decided to hold up this bill will at least come forward to own up to it. That way we can move forward to overcome their oppositions and get our veterans the support they need."

After Murray released her statement, Republicans made what appears to be a hasty retreat. A spokesman for Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), the ranking Republican on the Senate veterans' committee, announced Thursday afternoon that the issue had been resolved and there was no hold.

Who originally placed the secret hold, and why? No one seems to know or wants to say.APTOPIX Memorial Day

World War II veteran Jesse R. Turner salutes while being comforted by Helen Marie Misel at a display of more than 1,700 United States flags in Shawnee, Kan., May 26, 2012. (Orlin Wagner / AP Photo)

Michael Brumas, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, tells The Daily Beast, "I don't know of any secret holds. This was a late request and by the time the Senate adjourned not all 100 senators had had a chance to sign off on it. The bill was being reviewed in the waning hours before the Senate finished its work. Unfortunately, the Senate adjourned before the clearance process was finished. There was an effort to get this cleared before Congress adjourned early Saturday morning. But it's now been cleared by both sides for action when the Senate reconvenes."

"It cleared every Democrat in the Senate, but there was still a hold on the bill, so obviously it had to be from someone on the Republican side," said Matt McAlvanah, a spokesman for Senator Murray. "It lasted until we adjourned, nearly 72 hours. We then went into recess, with the Republicans still having a hold on this bill. So we put out a release today saying someone should step forward."

"Now we hear that Republicans are saying there is no longer a hold. That's fine, but it does little good now because we're not coming back until postelection. Now we have to pass this bill by the skin of our teeth just to make sure the VA can process the checks. It's going to be a close call."

Because of the delay, the Senate, which is out of session until Nov. 13, will have to vote on the legislation on the very same day it reconvenes in order for its payments to get out on time, according to a statement from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

"Should Congress pass the COLA after that date, VA would have to make complex programming changes to the system that could not be accomplished in time to pay the COLA increase on January 1," according to the VA release. "Consequently, the December COLA increase would have to be paid retroactively."

If the bill doesn't pass that first day the Senate returns, the effects could be significant, especially for disabled veterans and their families on fixed incomes, says Paul Sullivan, a Gulf War veteran and former director of Veterans for Common Sense who now works at Bergmann & Moore, a law firm that specializes in VA disability law.

"We don't want to scare our veterans. But delays can be harmful," Sullivan tells The Daily Beast. "Veterans already jump through enough hoops to obtain disability benefits. Delaying what should be an automatic process increases uncertainty in the lives of our veterans, and that is wrong."

Delaying COLA is "highly unusual, and unconscionable," said Sullivan, noting that as reporters started making phone calls, the hold was apparently withdrawn. "It shows the power of exposing these kind of shenanigans, which are so irresponsible," he said.

The COLA increase, which is designed to offset inflation and other economic factors, was cleared last year without incident. No holds, no delays. By voice vote, the Senate passed S 894, which directed the VA to give disabled veterans the same increase on the same effective date as the rise in Social Security.

"We do not have a hold on that piece of legislation. Someone was saying it was being blocked, but not by us."

Joe Kasper, deputy chief of staff for Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.), a Marine veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, says, "Without really knowing the reason for the holdup, it's anybody's guess why there was a block. It's one thing to say stuff like this happens from time to time, but meeting the needs of veterans is a top priority that consistently receives bipartisan support. Often, there are real concerns about funding and offsets, and if that's the case, then there needs to be strong push for resolution. But until it's known who and why [it was held], there's not much available to justify the move."

"It's clear that after being caught red-handed, the Republican caucus decided not to snitch on whichever member would stoop low enough to put a hold on support for disabled veterans," a senior Democratic Senate aide, who asked for anonymity because of concerns about possible professional repercussions, told The Daily Beast. "While these backroom tactics are pretty reprehensible, it will likely allow them to keep the identity of the senator who held this up from ever being revealed."

Meanwhile, rumors are flying on The Hill about the mystery senator who allegedly placed this secret hold.

Moira Bagley, a spokeswoman for Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who several sources said they suspected could be responsible, flatly denied it. "It's not us," she said. "We do not have a hold on that piece of legislation. Someone was saying it was being blocked, but not by us."

When the House passed the bill in July, House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) said: "Veterans have enough to worry about without the added stress of not knowing if their cost-of-living adjustments will be held up in a political tug-of-war. We have an obligation to the men and women who served this nation to make sure we are doing everything we can to keep the promise made to them."

This apparent short-lived hold comes just one day after Senate Republicans blocked passage of the Veterans Jobs Corps Act of 2012, which would have established a $1 billion program putting veterans to work on federal lands and in local police and fire departments. Tags:

From the Balkans to the dairyland, thanks and praise showered Wisconsin Army National Guard Soldiers returning from 10 months supporting a NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo.

"Thanks for going and showing what Cheeseheads from Wisconsin can do to help the rest of the world," Wisconsin Army National Guard Command Sgt. Maj. George Stopper told approximately 125 Soldiers from the Milwaukee-based Headquarters Company, 157th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade (MEB) and the 32nd Military Police Company during a welcome home ceremony Thursday (Sept. 27) at the 128th Air Refueling Wing in Milwaukee. "You absolutely made a difference in today's world."

The majority of the 157th MEB Soldiers served as the brigade headquarters for the Multinational Battle Group East (MNBG E), also referred to as Task Force Falcon. Others supported the Kosovo Force (KFOR) medevac mission and staffed the aviation headquarters, lift and maintenance, and also supported NATO operations in Bosnia. The mission was to maintain a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement in Kosovo.

"All the issues have not been solved in Kosovo, I can tell you that," said Col. Jeffrey Liethen, 157th MEB commander who also commanded Task Force Falcon, overseeing approximately 800 U.S. troops and another 750 troops from nine different nations. "When we first got there the Kosovo Serbs were in a state of unrest and exercising civil disobedience in that they closed all of the major supply routes. We had to airlift all of the supplies to our remote bases. As we progressed and started negotiating, taking down roadblocks - taking some down forcefully - those MSRs opened up and we were able to more efficiently supply our troops in the field."

Liethen told the families and friends gathered at the homecoming ceremony that they could be proud of their Soldiers.

"We went to a very small country far, far away and your Soldiers truly made a difference in the lives of all the citizens of Kosovo," Liethen said. "Your Soldiers from Wisconsin set the standard for all future Kosovo Force rotations."

This was not lost on German Army Maj. Gen Volker Halbauer, Kosovo Force commander.

"Col. Liethen can be proud to have commanded such a capable multinational force which helped shape the future of Kosovo," Halbauer said during a Sept. 22 ceremony at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, in which the 157th MEB transferred the mission to the 218th MEB of the South Carolina Army National Guard.

Back in Wisconsin, senior Wisconsin National Guard leaders agreed.

"Increasingly, we know this in Wisconsin, that when we send an element out, they're the best - the best and the brightest," said Chief Warrant Officer Craig Krenz, the Wisconsin Army National Guard's command chief warrant officer. "Increasingly NGB, the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense is learning that, too. You've contributed to that legacy."

Brig. Gen. Mark Anderson, commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, said he expects Wisconsin National Guard Soldiers to set the standard.

"When we have Wisconsin Soldiers deploy overseas or go respond to a domestic mission, we are sending our very best," he said.

Gov. Scott Walker, who visited the 157th MEB in Kosovo in his role as Wisconsin National Guard commander in chief, also had words of praise.

"It is great to be back where we started," Walker said, referring to the 157th MEB's sendoff ceremony a year ago. "It's an even greater honor for me to ... not only greet you home, but to have seen firsthand along with Maj. Gen. Dunbar the amazing work you've done."

Walker displayed a challenge coin he received during his Kosovo visit, and noted that the Wisconsin flag given to the 157th MEB to fly in Kosovo is now on display in the state capitol as a reminder of the unit's service.

Liethen also said Task Force Falcon improved integration of the multinational forces with U.S. troops.

"We made it a point to embrace those countries and get them involved, not only in the planning and coordination, but also social functions and recognition ceremonies," Liethen said, "and made them feel like part of our family."

Maj. Gen. Don Dunbar, adjutant general of Wisconsin, acknowledged that the peacekeeping mission in Kosovo had two fronts.

"The toughest job in the world is sending your loved one overseas - your husband, your wife, your son or your daughter, your father or your mother - because everything he or she did before they left falls on your shoulders, so you do it all while they're gone," Dunbar said. "You add to that the worry every night that you don't want them to get hurt. We know what a burden that is. I want you to know how much we appreciate that, because we could not defend this country without these Soldiers. And we would never have these Soldiers if we didn't have your support."

Becky Wentland agreed the hardest part of her husband Staff Sgt. Adam Wentland's deployment was taking on their three children by herself. Their children, NJ and Tayla, said they missed the little things like watching TV or playing with their dad.

Sgt. Johnny Ferreira, a squad leader with the 32nd MP Company, said he missed his fiancée Candace Becher and their 4-year-old daughter Leia most while he enforced law and order at Camp Bondsteel. Candace said she missed the "everyday little things, having him here."

"I'm just going to spend time with my family," Ferreira said of his immediate plans. "That's the most important thing that I missed."

The Republican hold on a Senate bill that provides a cost-of-living adjustment increase for disabled veterans in 2013 has been dropped. The Veterans Affairs Department warned the bill must be approved quickly in November to ensure payments in January.

In a sharply worded statement Thursday, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., chairwoman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, called the hold a "stunning" move she could not comprehend. By the end of the day the hold had been lifted.

Since the Senate did not pass the bill when it adjourned last week, lawmakers must approve it on Nov. 13, the day they return, to avoid payment problems, said Josh Taylor, a VA spokesman.

If Senators fail to sign off on the legislation quickly, then "VA would have to make complex programming changes to the system that could not be accomplished in time to pay the COLA increase on Jan. 1," Taylor said. "Consequently, the December COLA increase would have to be paid retroactively."

David Ward, a spokesman for Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, said, "we can pass it [the COLA bill] quickly. It should not take too long," an indication the bill would be passed on Nov. 13.

The COLA increase covers disability and compensation payments to 3.9 million veterans and their survivors. The House, in its version of the bill passed July 9, would provide a 1.9 percent increase. The Congressional Budget Office on Sept.19 pegged the COLA at 1.3 percent, which would cost $686 million in 2013 and $915 million in subsequent years.

-- We will be watching Nov.13th. GOP actions on veterans issues this week are mind bogglingly stupid in a election year . The GOP seems like a rudderless ship right now.

Senate GOP Blocks Jobs Bill for VetsMesquite Citizen JournalI have been criticized for looking deep into history for support of my positions–I'll try to do better by citing a defeated bill from just last week. A column headline from the September 20 Las Vegas Review Journal read, "Senate GOP blocks jobs bill...

Letters: Veterans, jobs and partisan politicsLos Angeles TimesThe recent jobs bill for veterans was blocked by Senate Republicans last week. It was designed to help veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan since the 9/11 attacks. It was being paid for, as The Times writes, by "imposing penalties on Medicare ...

Veterans' Jobs Bill Blocked in the SenateNew York Times (blog)The measure, which would have potentially created jobs for up to 20,000 veterans, was blocked on a procedural point by Republicans, who argued that the bill was unpaid for. Senator Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat and the bill's main sponsor, said ...

Ventura County StarDid I miss something? Where is The Star's article discussing how Senate Republicans filibustered the veterans jobs bill and it failed to pass? Why not an article on how the Republicans have done everything they can to defeat President Obama and America ...

I am dismayed by the vote by Republican U.S. senators to kill a jobs bill for veterans. Usually, the GOP wraps itself in the flag and loudly proclaims its support for our men and women in service. Apparently, they don't care as much when our veterans complete their service and seek jobs in the country they defended so admirably.

Perhaps the GOP senators are interested only in creating jobs for their particular interests. The jobs bill would have been paid for by collecting delinquent taxes from Medicare providers and others. What's wrong with that? Do Republicans believe that it is OK not to pay your legitimate taxes? Click here to find out more!

It is shameful for these senators to turn their backs on our heroes. Truly shameful.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Both Sens. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul helped kill a plan that could have helped create jobs for the 3,000 unemployed Kentucky veterans who served their country in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

The proposal fell short by just two votes of the 60 required to clear a procedural hurdle erected by Republicans in the Senate last week.

So the votes of the two Kentuckians really could have made a difference.

The measure would have helped train and employ military veterans as police, firefighters and first responders, and would have created a Veterans Job Corps to work in reforestation, historic preservation and resource management on public lands.

We had hoped that Kentuckians in Congress would work to include a provision enabling the Veterans Job Corps to also reforest private lands that have been strip-mined in Appalachia.

If not in the Senate, the modification to include Appalachian reforestation could have been made in the House, where Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, carries a lot of clout by virtue of his seniority and chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee. Rogers' district would benefit hugely from scaling up the Green Forests Work initiative based at the University of Kentucky.

Alas, even a bipartisan bill to help veterans stumbled on the sharp partisanship that has been the hallmark of this Congress, and the jobs-for-vets bill didn't even make it out of the Senate.

Republicans used a point of order to block it, saying the measure violated the 2011 Budget Control Act that placed caps on discretionary spending, even though the jobs bill included revenue-raising measures to pay for itself.

The bill was supported by all 53 Democrats and five Republicans, including a couple who have tough re-election races. But the 58-40 vote wasn't quite enough to overcome the objection.

Senate Veterans Affairs chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., told her colleagues: "A vote to support this point of order says that despite the fact that we have paid for this bill, despite the fact that one in four young veterans are out of work, despite the fact that veterans' suicides are outpacing combat deaths and despite the fact that more and more veterans are coming home, we are not going to invest in these challenges."

If we can raise $200,000 by October 1st, we'll have the resources to fully stock the new USO Warrior and Family Center adjacent to the Community Hospital at Ft. Belvoir and provide support for the USO's other programs and services for our troops. With your help we can send all the touches of home our wounded troops need while they heal with honor and reclaim the bright future they deserve.

A wounded warrior's journey to recovery can take months, even years. That's why it's critical to provide a homelike environment full of the supplies, resources and little touches of comfort to ease their burden during the healing process.

Every dollar you contribute to this important effort will make the path forward just a little easier for a healing hero who put it all on the line for us and will help us continue to provide morale boosting programs and services for all our troops.

This is about being there for our troops and their families when they need us most and staying by their side along every step in their journey to recovery.

Wounded veterans seeking treatment at a major national Veterans Affairs hospital will no longer have to stay hours away at a cheap motel thanks in part to a recent golf tournament in Virginia.

The record-breaking $315,000 raised at the PenFed Foundation's Ninth Annual Military Heroes Golf Classic last week at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club will help build the $11 million Defenders Lodge, which is spearheaded by the foundation and currently under construction to be completed in 2013. It will be a home away from home for injured veterans seeking care at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. At present, many veterans have to drive long distances to find a suitable hotel to stay at before major surgeries.

Virginia Golf Tournament Raises Record-Breaking $315,000 to Support PenFed Foundation Programs Funds to help meet growing need of military personnel and their families

September 25, 2012, Alexandria, Va.−The Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation (PenFed Foundation), a nationally recognized nonprofit organization working to meet the unmet needs of military personnel and their families, announced today it raised more than $315,000 at its Ninth Annual Military Heroes Golf Classic, which took place at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club last Monday in Gainesville, Va., with over 150 players.

“This year’s tournament broke our record for money raised to help service members and veterans,” said Christopher Flynn, president of the PenFed Foundation. “Our donors should feel good about the help the money they raised will do, even if they didn’t win the hole-in-one competition.”

The money raised will go towards supporting the foundation’s programs to help provide wounded service members with free day care while undergoing medical treatment, give no-interest loans to service members in emergency situations and offer military personnel and their families grants for down payments and closing costs when buying their first home.

This year, money raised at the tournament will also help build the $11 million Defenders Lodge, which is spearheaded by the foundation and currently under construction to be completed in 2013. It will be a home away from home for injured veterans seeking care at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. At present, many veterans have to drive long distances to find a suitable hotel to stay at before major surgeries.

The more than $315,000 raised came from corporate sponsorships and pledges, ticket sales, and an auction that the foundation held online and at the event. Event organizers from the foundation say this year’s golf tournament would not have been possible without the generous support of their sponsors including Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed), PenFed Realty, Route 66 Extended Warranty, Epic Real Estate Solutions, American Express, Allied Solutions, and PSCU.

“The tournament was a great day of golf with a great group of people,” added Flynn. “But at the end of the day, what really matters is that we were doing good for those who defend our nation and protect our freedom.”

***

About the Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation (PenFed Foundation)The PenFed Foundation is a nationally recognized nonprofit organization working to meet the unmet needs of military personnel and their families through supporting wounded soldiers, providing financial management assistance and home ownership aid. The foundation is also the primary sponsor of the new $11 million Defenders Lodge supported by donated land from the government and financed entirely through private donations. The Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) covers all labor expenses for the foundation so every dollar donated goes directly to supporting its programs.

Monday, September 24, 2012

According to the Department of Labor, that's the percentage of post-9/11 veterans that are unemployed in America right now.

And it's unacceptable.

The disappointing number comes as no surprise to veterans nationwide and reinforce what we hear from our members every day: the struggles of this rough economy are real.

But IAVA is listening, and we're here to help.

Thanks to your support, we're creating opportunities to connect IAVA vets with companies and organizations that can help them transition from combat to career. Recently, IAVA has teamed up with global firms like McKinsey & Company and BT to offer career development workshops, resume workshops and job-shadowing programs.

And we're adding new programs every day - all for free. Vets and their families can check out The Rucksack for employment and professional development opportunities in their communities. We do events from San Francisco to Atlanta every week—so make sure to follow us on Twitter at @IAVA for updates and spread the word.

If vets are looking to increase their employment prospects by going back to school, they can also check out NewGIBill.org. Here, they can calculate their benefits through our free GI Bill calculator and scout schools across the country to make sure they get the high quality education they deserve.

If you have any veterans in your life, please pass this message along – we're stronger together.

P.S. IAVA is also fighting for vets on two critical bills moving through Congress right now – one to improve the GI Bill and one to create more jobs for vets. Learn more about our policy work on IAVA.org.

RIVERSIDE -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris yesterday filed a civil lawsuit seeking the removal of officers and directors of Help Hospitalized Veterans, a California charity. The complaint alleges that those running the organization engaged in self-dealing, paid excessive executive compensation and engaged in fraudulent fundraising and other unlawful activities.

The lawsuit also seeks to recover more than $4.3 million in funds improperly diverted from Help Hospitalized Veterans. Those funds were meant to support several programs serving veterans and active-duty military, including providing arts and craft kits to hospitalized veterans. Instead, they were used to enrich the organization's officers and fundraisers.

"The officers of Help Hospitalized Veterans improperly diverted money that hard-working and patriotic Americans donated to support injured vets," said Attorney General Kamala D. Harris. "We must protect veterans, active-duty military and donors from scam artists who see them as little more than prey for their financial frauds."

The lawsuit alleges that the directors and officers of Help Hospitalized Veterans breached their fiduciary duty by wasting its charitable assets on such things as golf memberships and a condominium (for use by officers), and authorizing excessive executive compensation to the group's former President (Roger Chapin) and its current President (Michael Lynch).

The suit alleges Chapin received more than $2.3 million in excessive compensation during the final seven years of his tenure and excessive compensation to Lynch totaled over $900,000. Chapin is additionally charged with self-dealing as a result of substantial diversions of the charity's funds to entities in which he had a financial interest. Those diversions include loans Help Hospitalized Veterans made to a firm called American Target Advertising, which was making substantial payments to Chapin. American Target Advertising is a for-profit business (founded by Chapin's close friend Richard Viguerie) that directs Help Hospitalized Veterans' vast direct-mail fundraising operation.

The lawsuit further alleges that the nonprofit used increasingly-common accounting gimmicks to inflate the amount of income purportedly spent on providing veterans' services while artificially minimizing the amount reportedly spent on fundraising. For example, Help Hospitalized Veterans' use of one of these gimmicks resulted in decreasing its reported fundraising costs from 65 percent of total costs to less than 30 percent. As a result, the filings to both the IRS and the Attorney General's office were substantially false. Donors and charity watchdog groups rely on both of those reported expenditure categories in evaluating a charity's efficiency.

Controversy around the performance of veteran's charities like Help Hospitalized Veterans was brought to the public's attention in 2007 by Rep. Henry A. Waxman who, as Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Hearings, held hearings into their fundraising practices and overhead.

The lawsuit seeks general and punitive damages, restitution, civil penalties and the removal of those officers and directors named in the lawsuit.

Named defendants in the lawsuit include: Help Hospitalized Veterans; its former president Roger Chapin (California); former employee Elizabeth Chapin (California); current president Michael Lynch (California); the following officers or directors of the charity: Robert Beckley, Jr. (Arizona), Thomas Arnold (Florida), Leonard Rogers (Florida), and Gorham Black (Florida); accountant Robert Frank and the company Frank & Company, PC (Virginia); and direct-mail professional fundraiser Creative Direct Response, Inc. (Maryland).

More than 2 million of the nation's 22 million veterans live in California, the highest number for any state. Protecting these veterans, and active-duty military, from financial scams has been a priority for Attorney General Harris. This focus resulted from a survey of veterans who work in the Department of Justice that was undertaken to inform Department efforts on the matter. Attorney General Harris and Holly Petraeus of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently spoke at Travis Air Force Base to warn of financial scams that target military members.

President Obama and I are personally committed to ending homelessness among Veterans within the next five years. I learned long ago that there are never any absolutes in life, and a goal of zero homeless Veterans sure sounds like an absolute. But unless we set ambitious targets for ourselves, we would not be giving this our very best efforts. No one who has served this Nation as a Veteran should ever be living on the street.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

When Coal got to Biscuit Acres Dog Park for the first time earlier this month, he immediately sniffed out the perimeter.

As a recently retired U.S. Marine Corps improvised device defeat dog, he was just following his training and clearing the new landscape of any explosives.

"It took him two hours," Judy Stephens said. "All the way around the perimeter, he wouldn't pay attention to us."

Stephens and her husband, Phil Stephens, adopted Coal after the 7-year-old black Labrador retired from the Marine Corps in January. He is now enjoying his retirement at their home in Tulsa, away from the stresses of war that affect dogs, as well as people.

Coal was in the Marine Corps for four years, including more than two years in Afghanistan, where he had two handlers. Coal's main objective was to use his finely tuned sense of smell to search off-leash for IEDs. When he located a potential bomb, Coal was trained to lie down and await orders.

These dogs have become a vitally important part of the military force for their abilities, but the inherent danger of searching for explosives in a war zone creates stress and sometimes injury to the dogs.

"He was what they call 'in blast' twice, which means he was right there at it," Judy Stephens said. "That's how he lost his tail."

Those experiences and other stress led Coal to change his behavior when he came back stateside in January, she said.

"The second time he came home, he seemed to have a lot of problems with stress, and he was being aggressive and pacing," she said. "So they decided to retire him. He just quit working. He just had it."

About the time Coal was retiring, Judy Stephens heard about the program through which retired IED-detecting dogs from the Marine Corps are adopted.

The couple had helped to rehabilitate and recuperate German shepherds for years, and they relished the opportunity to help give a dog like Coal a comfortable retirement.

Judy Stephens said the documentary "War Dogs: America's Forgotten Heroes" was also a factor in her desire to adopt one of these dogs. The documentary, which aired more than 10 years ago, tells the story of war dogs during the Vietnam War.

According to the documentary, thousands of dogs went to Vietnam to assist the soldiers, but only about 200 returned to the United States. The rest were either abandoned or euthanized, according to the documentary.

"These dogs are soldiers," Judy Stephens said. "They give their life for this country, and what do we do? We go off and leave them."

She filled out the extensive adoption application but didn't have high hopes of getting one of the dogs. The military tries to get the dogs to their former handlers or other military personnel first, then to others who apply.

"I got this email that said to be patient. The first dogs were going with the handlers and it might be six months to a year," Judy Stephens said. "About three weeks later, I get this email that said I've been chosen.

"I was so thrilled, so thrilled," she said.

Coal arrived at Tulsa International Airport on Sept. 13 and was met by the Stephenses.

"We let him out, and he was just so glad to see everybody," Judy Stephens said. "We brought him home, and he hopped right up in bed and slept with us."

Coal has acclimated well to their home in the time since he got to Tulsa, Judy Stephens said. He had stomach issues, his hearing is diminished, and though he loves to play fetch, he does so with a limp.

But the Stephenses said they are eager to give Coal a relaxed life now that he's finished his service.

"He's never known stability. It's always been confusion and noise," Judy Stephens said, with Coal spread out on the chair behind her, chewing on a rubber ball.

"It's also a sense of giving back when you take one on and give him a good home," Phil Stephens added.

About Me

Veterans Advocate and Past Chairman of American Cold War Veterans. Veteran of
the US Army 1989-1991. Served overseas in Southwest Asia for 17 months with the
528th USAAG during the Gulf War. 100 percent Service Connected Disabled Veteran also a member of VFW Dept NY Post 53 , NY Post 001 American Legion, DAV Robert P Illig Post #47.

About Me

This material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of veterans issues, etc. This constitutes a 'fair use'of any such
copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of
the US Copyright Law. This material is distributed without profit.